Method for the production of a fabric, particularly tape fabric, loom for the performance of the method and fabric produced according to the method

ABSTRACT

In the method for the production of a fabric, particularly tape fabric, two weft thread loops formed from different weft threads are laid into a shed formed of warp threads and bound off without use of an auxiliary thread. This is made possible thereby, that at least one weft thread is guided into the shed through a tooth gap of the reed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention concerns a method for the production of a fabric,particularly tape fabric, a loom for the performance of the method and afabric produced according to the method.

A method for the production of a tape fabric has become known from theGerman Pat. No. 1,804,973, in which weft thread loops are carried infrom both sides of a warp shed and connected by means of an auxiliarythread in the middle of the tape fabric. In that case, the auxiliarythread is drawn each time through the weft thread loop by means of aweaving needle effective perpendicularly to the tape plane and wovenwith itself at one side of the tape fabric.

Such a tape fabric produced according to the described method displaysin its middle a thickening row of stitches, which is disadvantageous notonly optically, but the exposed small stitch members of the auxiliarythread can also be easily damaged or destroyed, which has theconsequence of the dissolution of the tape fabric.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an important object of the invention to develop a method and aloom for the production of a tape fabric, in which the weft thread loopsare connected with one another within the width of the fabric without anauxiliary thread being needed and without danger of a dissolution of thetape fabric existing.

Now in order to implement this object and others which will become morereadily apparent as the description proceeds, the inventive method ofweaving a fabric, particularly a tape fabric, comprises the steps oflaying into a shed formed of warp threads at least two weft threads bymeans of weft thread introducing organs arranged laterally of the shed,at least one weft thread being fed, prestored according to programme, tothe shed through one of the tooth gaps provided in a reed for thepassage of the warp threads. The weft threads are then formed into loopswhich are laid in substantially parallel to the fabric beating edge, theloops are connected with one another within the width of the fabricbetween two adjacent warp threads by crossing the sides of a loop withthe respective sides of the other loop, while for the formation of afabric edge from said at least one weft thread fed through the reed,said thread is looped with itself or held by means of at least oneauxiliary thread.

As to the loom for practicing the method, there is taught a loom,particularly a tape loom, which comprises feed means for programmedprestored feeding of at least two weft threads into a shed formed ofwarp threads passing through the respective tooth gaps of a loom reed,said feed means being provided with at least two weft thread guides, atleast one of which is arranged upstream of the loom reed for guiding oneof said two weft threads through one of the loom reed gaps, at least twoweft thread introducing organs arranged laterally to the shed in theplane of the fabric being woven and so reciprocable across the shed inthe machine rhythm to form said at least two weft threads into loopsconnected together within the width of the fabric, and at least oneknitting tool reciprocable in the machine rhythm for forming an edge ofthe fabric from said one weft thread guided through the loom reed.

By the method according to the invention, it now becomes possible forthe first time to produce a fabric consisting of two weft thread loopsfree of ladders without use of an auxiliary thread. A fabric can thus beproduced with minimum material effort. After the weft threads have beenfastened and processed in the fabric, the fabric can no longer bedissolved. Through the weft thread feeding prestored to a program, afabric of desired density can be produced. Through the simpleintroduction of the weft threads, a great increase in performance isalso made possible in the production of the fabric.

In case auxiliary threads shall be used for the production of the fabricedge, for example for ornamental purposes, this also lets itself beperformed readily. Furthermore, three or more weft thread loops can alsobe introduced into the fabric. By selecting a weft thread from severalthreads of different colours or appearance, an extra-ordinary patternvariety can also be obtained. When the weft threads in a tape fabric areconnected with one another only by sections in fabric direction,openings can be obtained, for example for buttons. Although the methodaccording to the invention appears predestined for a tape fabric, it canalso be used to advantage for any other fabric.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be better understood and objects other than those setforth above, will become apparent when consideration is given to thefollowing detailed description thereof. Such description makes referenceto the annexed drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates a tape loom for the production of a tape fabricformed of two weft threads,

FIG. 2 illustrates a modification of the tape loom illustrated in FIG.1,

FIG. 3 illustrates a tape loom for the production of a tape fabricformed of three weft threads; and

FIG. 4 illustrates a tape loom for the production of a tape fabricformed of four weft threads.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In the tape loom according to FIG. 1, only the parts essential for anunderstanding of the invention have been illustrated purelyschematically, all remaining parts being omitted. A finished woven tapeis designated by 1 and warp threads by 2. The warp threads 2 are raisedand lowered alternatingly in the machine rhythm or cycle by means of notillustrated, known means of the machine drive and in that case form ashed 3. Two weft thread introducing organs or elements 4 and 5, whichare constructed in one piece, are moved together into and out of theshed 3 in direction A in the machine rhythm by the not illustratedmachine drive. The weft thread introducing organ 4 at its end displaysan eyelet 6 for the guidance of a weft thread 7, while the weft threadintroducing organ 5 at its end displays an open thread guide 8 for theguidance of a weft thread 9. The weft thread introducing organs 4 and 5could also be executed separately, each being drivable on its own. Bothweft thread introducing organs 4 and 5 can also display at the end anopen or closed or, if desired, an open and a closed thread guide.

Two thread guide organs, which are constructed as desired as knownthread guides 10 and 11, are parts of a not further shown device whichserves for the feeding, prestored to program, of the weft threads 7 and9. A reed 12 with bars 13 is movable to and fro in direction B in themachine rhythm for the beating of the weft threads 7 and 9 against thefabric beating edge 14. On the side lying opposite to the drive side ofthe weft thread introducing organs 4 and 5, a weaving needle or knittingtool 15 is movable to and fro in direction C in the machine rhythm inknown manner.

In operation of the loom, the weft thread 7 now gets through the threadguide 10 from externally of the warp threads 2 into the shed 3, whilethe weft thread 9 is guided into the shed 3 through a tooth gap in themiddle of the reed 12 by the thread guide 11 in front of the reed 12.During the weft insertion on each cyclic change of the shed 3 into theend setting, shown in FIG. 1, of the weft thread introducing organs 4and 5 guiding the weft threads 7 and 9, two weft thread loops 16 and 17approximately parallel to the fabric beating edge 14 are formed eachtime. In that case, the weft thread loop 16 of the thread 7 extends overthe entire width of the shed, while the weft thread loop 17 extends onlyover half the width of the shed.

On each weft insertion, the weft thread 7 coming from externally of theshed 3 is guided alternatingly below and above the outermost warp thread2, whereby the lefthand fabric edge 18 is formed. Through theco-operation of the thread guides 6 and 8 of the weft thread introducingorgans 4 and 5, the weft thread loop 17 is guided through the weftthread loop 16 on each weft insertion controlled by the machine drive,whereby the loop connection 19 is formed in the centre of the fabrictape. On each weft insertion, the weaving needle 15 also catches theweft thread 9 for looping with itself, whereby the righthand fabric edge20 is formed. After each return of the weft thread introducing organs 4and 5 into the initial setting on the drive side, the reed 12 beats thelast inserted weft thread loops 16 and 17 against the fabric edge 14 sothat the lefthand fabric half is formed by the weft thread 7 and therighthand fabric half by the weft thread 9.

In the described manner, a tape fabric is obtained, which isunobjectionably looped without protruding edge within the width of thefabric without use of an auxiliary thread. By the weft thread being fedprestored to program, any desired weft thread length can be allocated toeach weft insertion so that every fabric part can be woven as densely asdesired. By switching the programming off, a quite normal tape can alsobe produced. When the weft thread is fed externally of the middle of thereed, the weft thread loops brush different parts of the width of thefabric so that fabric parts of different width can be obtained.

In the tape loom according to FIG. 2, both weft threads 7 and 9 areguided into the shed 3 through a respective tooth gap between th bars 13of the reed by thread guides 10 and 11 arranged in front of the reed,wherein parts corresponding to the loom in FIG. 1 are provided with likereference numerals. By means of weft thread introducing organs 4 and 5constructed as push-rods and moving into the shed 3 from each fabricside on each weft insertion, weft thread loops 16 and 17 are formed,which are connected in the middle of the fabric into a cross-connection23. A weaving needle 21 and 22 respectively seizes the weft thread loops16 and 17 on each fabric side and loops them together with the weftthreads 7 and 9 respectively forming the fabric edge 20 and 18.

According to FIG. 3, three weft threads 30, 31 and 32 are introducedthrough a respective tooth gap of the reed into the shed. Acting as weftthread introducing organs are two hooks 33 and 34, which form the weftthread loops 36 and 37 by pulling-out of the weft threads 30 and 31, aswell as a push-rod 35, which forms the weft thread loop 38. In thismanner, the weft threads 30 and 32 are looped into the loop connection19 within the tape fabric and the weft threads 31 and 32 are connectedinto the cross-connection 23. For the formation of the fabric edges, theweft thread loops 36 and 37, respectively, are looped together by meansof not illustrated weaving tools with the weft threads 30 and 31 formingthe fabric edges, as shown in FIG. 2.

When the thread guide 39 is now for example constructed as part of anequipment which for example consists of three thread guides controllableaccording to pattern, the weft thread 32 can be selected from threethreads of different colour or appearance, while the unselected threadsare guided into the fabric with a respective warp thread. In thismanner, the middle part of the fabric can be structured as fabricpattern through changing of the weft thread. As a further possibility,the patterned middle part can be extended up to the fabric edges so thatthe weft threads 30 and 31 only still serve for the formation of thefabric edges.

In the example of the FIG. 4, four weft threads 40, 41, 42 and 43 areguided into the shed through a respective tooth gap of the reed. Theweft thread loops 48, 49, 50 and 51 are formed by means of weft threadintroducing organs 44, 45, 46 and 47 constructed as push rods or hooks.The weft thread loops 48 and 49 as well as 50 and 51 are looped togetherwithin the width of the fabric, while 49 and 50 are connected crossedwith each other. When one or more thread guide organs 52, 53, 54 and 55are now constructed as equipment controllable according to pattern, thenall feasible pattern possibilities open up for the fabric. Auxiliarythreads, which are connected at the edges with the weft thread loops bymeans of introducing tools controllable in the machine rhythm, can alsostill be fed externally of the warp threads for the formation of thefabric edges. While there are shown and described present preferredembodiments of the invention, it is to be distinctly understood that theinvention is not limited thereto, but may be otherwise variouslyembodied and practiced within the scope of the following claims.

What I claim is:
 1. A method of weaving a fabric, particularly a tapefabric, comprising the steps of:laying into a shed formed of warpthreads at least two weft threads by means of weft thread introducingorgans arranged laterally of the shed, at least one weft thread beingfed, prestored according to programme, to the shed through one of anumber of tooth gaps provided in a reed for the passage of the warpthreads, forming the weft threads into loops which are laid-insubstantially parallel to a fabric beating edge, connecting the loopswith one another within the width of the fabric between two adjacentwarp threads by crossing the sides of a loop with respective sides ofthe other loop, while for the formation of a fabric edge from said atleast one weft thread fed through the reed, said thread is looped withitself or held by means of at least one auxiliary thread.
 2. The methodaccording to claim 1, further including the steps of:feeding the otherone of the two weft threads to the shed from externally of one side ofthe warp threads, the two weft threads being laid into the shed in asame direction, and wherein the steps of forming the weft threads intoloops and connecting the loops with one another within the width of thefabric comprise inserting, by means of a knitting tool, the loop formedfrom said at least one weft thread fed through the reed through the loopformed from said other weft thread and looping the two weft thread loopstogether.
 3. The method according to claim 1, further including thesteps of:feeding the two weft threads to the shed each through one oftwo adjacent tooth gaps to the reed, and wherein the two crossed weftthread loops are formed into the shed in two opposite directions.
 4. Themethod according to claim 1, wherein:the step of laying comprises layingat least one further weft thread into the shed, each of the weft threadsbeing fed through a respective tooth gap of the reed, and wherein theconnected weft thread loops forming a middle region of the fabric areformed into the shed in a same direction and looped together or formedinto the shed in two opposite directions, respectively.
 5. The methodaccording to claim 11, wherein:the weft thread loops are connectedtogether within the width of the fabric only in discrete sections of thefabric.
 6. The method according to claim 1, wherein:said at least oneweft thread fed to the shed through a tooth gap of the reed is selectedfrom several delivered threads, and each unselected thread is introducedtogether with a warp thread into the fabric.
 7. A loom, particularly atape loom, comprising:a loom reed having tooth gaps, feed means for theprogrammed prestored feeding of at least two weft threads into a shedformed of warp threads passing through respective tooth gaps of the loopreed, said feed means being provided with at least two weft threadguides, at least one of said guides is arranged upstream of the loomreed for guiding one of said two weft threads through one of the loomreed gaps, at least two weft thread introducing organs arrangedlaterally of the shed in a plane of the fabric being woven andreciprocable across the shed in the machine rhythm such as to form saidat least two weft threads into loops connected together within the widthof the fabric, and at least one knitting tool reciprocable in themachine rhythm for forming an edge of the fabric from said one weftthread guided through the loom reed.
 8. The loom according to claim 7,wherein:the other one of said at least two weft thread guides isarranged on one side externally of the warp threads, and said at leasttwo weft thread introducing organs are mounted on the same side as saidother guide, said weft thread introducing organs being constructed inone piece and being formed, in the direction of the fabric being woven,by a first introducing portion, an end of which displays an open threadguide to form into loops said at least one weft thread guided throughthe loom reed, and by a second introducing portion, an end of whichdisplays a closed thread guide to form into loops the weft thread fedthrough said other weft thread guide, the first introducing portionbeing shorter than the second introducing portion, and said knittingtool comprises a knitting needle arranged on the other side of the warpthreads for inserting the loops formed by the first introducing portioninto the loops formed by the second introducing portion and to form theedge of the fabric.
 9. The loom according to claim 7, wherein:said atleast two weft thread guides of the feed means are arranged upstream ofthe loom reed, at least one of said weft thread introducing organsconstructed as hook, and a respective one of said knitting tools beingmounted on each side of the warp threads.
 10. The loom according toclaim 7, wherein:said at least two weft thread guides of the feed meansare arranged upstream of the loom reed, at least one of said weft threadintroducing organs constructed as push rod, and a respective one of saidknitting tools being mounted on each side of the warp threads.
 11. Theloom according to claim 7, wherein:the feed means comprise a threadfeeding organ arranged upstream of the loom reed for the selection of aweft thread and constructed from several raisable and lowerable threadguide as a device controllable according to pattern.
 12. The loomaccording to claim 7, wherein:at least one introducing organ,controllable in the machine rhythm, for at least one auxiliary thread ismounted on at least one side of the warp shed.
 13. The fabric producedaccording to the method of claim 1.